Halbach magnetic arrays have enabled electrical motors to achieve substantial new efficiencies and powers than were previously possible. Various applications of these types of magnetic arrays have included such things as the bullet train, rotational electric batteries, and a variety other mechanical and electrical devices.
Since the Halbach array was first developed it has been applied to various applications in order to exploit the relationship between kinetic and electrical energy which are uniquely related and can be transitioned by magnetic fields. For instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,758,146 issued to Post on Jul. 6, 2004, a pair of Halbach arrays are magnetically and structurally connected so as to provide energy for propulsion of the arrays along a track. In this invention the Halbach arrays actually result in magnetic levitation which may be capable of propelling a vehicle or other conveyance along the track.
The interaction of the Halbach arrays with each other combined with the interaction of the Halbach arrays with electrically independent track circuit arrays is intended to result in propulsion of the Halbach arrays (together with any objects attached to them) with a high level of energy efficiency. While the invention taught by Post teaches an efficient use of energy directed towards a specific result it does not teach the generation of power.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,768,407, issued to Kohda, et al, on Jul. 27, 2004, a magnetic field generator is taught. In this invention a Halbach array is used to supply a magnetic circuit for the purpose of providing a more powerful permanent magnetic field for use in high energy applications, such as particle accelerators, magnetic resonance imaging machines, and so forth. This device shows the effectiveness of Halbach array is in concentrating and efficiently transitioning between mechanical and electrical energy.
In another invention by Post, U.S. Pat. No. 6,858,962, issued on Feb. 22, 2005, a Halbach array is used to regulate voltage and power into a form and level which may be useful in reliably propelling a vehicle or supplying energy to a source requiring a specific level of voltage and current. It is a power regulation device rather than a power generator, per se.
Integrated circuitry has permitted the luxury of increasingly precise control over the flow of electrical circuits and has enabled automated decision-making concerning the precise application of electrical energy at rapid speeds in order to achieve optimal results in a variety of endeavors.
Along with the improvements in the control of the flow of electrical energy and the enabling of precise delivery of electrical energy by automated decision-making, either through fields or currents, has also developed improved understanding and the ability to exploit and manipulate electromagnetic properties of various elements. This has enabled the production of permanent magnets and cores for electromagnets which achieve previously unobtainable properties in the ability of materials to retain magnetic flux as desired onto create electromagnets which may rapidly adapt to produce a high level of magnetic flux and then have the flux either reduced or reversed as may be desired.
The electrical and electromagnetic characteristics of the fields and currents created by each apparatus of this sort is unique and may afford potential for further and enhanced efficiencies. For instance, certain waveforms are more adaptable to harness energy in a different manner and such may offer advantages. The device taught in the invention taught in U.S. Pat. No. 7,352,096, issued to the present inventors on Apr. 1, 2008, represents a substantial advance in the art. It achieves a high level of efficiency by precisely timing the oscillation of fixed-in-place electromagnetic fields traveling through a series of circumferential permanent magnetic fields to propel a rotor. It would appear that the rapid reversal of the electromagnetic fields associated with the stator consumes a relatively substantial effort in energizing the electromagnets and then loss as the electromagnet is de-energized in order to be reversed. Accordingly, it would be of benefit to find a means of saving this energy as well as facilitating the more rapid energizing and reversal of each of the electromagnets.
The combination of these abilities might be useful in developing a device or apparatus for the generation of electrical energy at relatively small levels of consumption which might more effectively harness the energy from the permanent magnets and achieve an effective generation of rotational energy for a variety of applications from propelling a vehicle or motor to pure power generation without burning fossil fuels or creating nuclear reactions and may be helpful for emergency conditions or to augment commercial power.
While each application must be specifically engineered, the research performed and published to date includes specific limitations of the existing Halbach-type array. If these limitations could be overcome the Halbach-type magnetic array could be applied to a variety of functions.
It is added, however, helpful to recognize the advantages provided by a new and unique power generation, conversion, or storage device in order to take advantage of the opportunities residing therein. With respect to the apparatus taught in U.S. Pat. No. 7,352,096, this advantage could exist in the tendency of the apparatus to not lose energy in the movement of electrons in and out of the electromagnetic coil and the resultant square wave, which allows more efficient conversion to and from a direct current.